Books, books, books.
 

I finally have a handle on the quilting books I have collected. It is almost an obsession.

They are shelved with foam core dividers and now, as of today, I have an Excel spreadsheet of all the titles by category. Still found at least 10 duplicates. The total, not complete, is 841. Whew.

So many ideas, so little time.

It seems I spent so much time trying to find a book that I reduced the time I could sew. No more.

Oh My Gravy!!! You sound like me.....although I don't have anywhere near 841....WOW!!!

OMG - and I thought I had a lot of books. :)

I LOVE quilting books! Its like a collection, and I learn so much! Never know what I am going to pull what from.lol
I have shelves full of them.lol
Tammy

I have quite a library of quilt books also, but nothing like the number you have. I love to read them to learn new techniques for piecing and quilting. I only discovered two duplicates when I organized my collection.

Wow I have like 50 and I though I had a lot, 841 is a library

Geezzz Mariezzz that is a lot of books!!!!

O my and to think I own one Quilting Magazine, lol , but then I just eye a quilt I like and wing it from there, so no need for the books. :)

I used to have over 300 cookbooks and I thought THAT was a lot! (BTW, I finally gave most to the library.) :)

Pickles,....must be a "Texas" thing; I am a "wing-it" gal too, LOL !

Books are like my friends and provide much comfort, entertainment, ideas. I've never counted my quilting books. I have arranged and rearranged several times; by subject; by author; by size; my favorite ones. Looking at my collection, someone would think I am a very talented quilter. Like you, I did find duplicates. I bought one book three times. I thought there was something wrong with me. Of course, I read books and watch movies over and over as well. Then books find there way to in my bed, under my bed, sofa..every where. I need to do a Excel workbook also. (Magazines are also organized by particular magazine, then by dates but I don't like this arrangement either.)

When I go to the library and check out quilting books, the checker always says something about making these quilts. I have to laugh and say No, I just look at all the pictures and dream.

omg...841... and i thought i had a lot of books...68.

Oh Wow. And I am clearing out my quilting books. I realized 1) I don't really have the room and 2) I never use my books I do most everything on line. When I came across a book I had bought in 1971 and barely opened and another that I don't even remember getting and I had never looked at I decided it was time to get down to bare basics. I am keeping techinque books , but all others are going .

Boy do you have a lot of books. Must take up one whole wall, at least. I have lots of magazines. I have maybe 40 books, but magazines are my thing. And I have so many duplicates of them. I arranged them by magazine and then by date and I had 3 of quite a few of them. Shame on me. I often order a kit from the magazines so I use them (of course I read them cover to cover) but I rarely often go back through them. If I order a kit, I leave that magazine out until the kit comes and put the magazine with the kit, otherwise, they sit on shelves. I should get some old ones out and check how quilter's use to put quilts together, without all the new tricks we have. You need to price all your books in case of's (which we don't want to think about, but it will happen someday that someone will have to go through all of our quilting supplies).

Wow!! I had about 100 that I was able to get used and cheap ($1-3 for the hardbacks), then the books stores started to charge half of the listed price so I now only buy what I want to make. I have gone through them and got rid of the ones I decided I would not use. I have sticky notes in the books marking projectis I want to make.

That's a LOT of books!!
My weakness is crochet patterns--particularly doily patterns. I have more patterns than I will EVER make, even if I live to be 100 and crochet 24/7! Sometimes if I don't feel like crocheting, which is my past-time of choice in the evenings, I will just look through my binders full of patterns. :)

I have a lot of books, also and have them on shelves (mostly) arranged alphabetically by their title, but I want to arrange them by topic, I think it would serve my needs better.

Would you please share the list of topics you used, and how you divided them? a picture of the shelves? I wanted to label the sections but I cannot label the shelves themselves, looking for a method.

Would appreciate your help!
Thanks!

I also have a lot of quilting book, though not that many! You may win the prize!
I also have them categorized and have made 2 lists, one by category and one that is alphabetical by author. Sometimes I think I need to do a third that is alphabetical by name of book. I guess that is my OCD kicking in!

You have a LOT of books! I bought about a dozen a week or so ago at our library sale. I got some brand new-like hard covers for $.50 each and some softcovers for $.25. I have really enjoyed looking at them.

I bought two coffee table quilt books and find myself looking through them almost weekly. I dread throwing out magazines so I take them to my doctors offices for the waiting areas. I have learned patience and by the Compilation CD's for the quilting magazines. I do have a bookshelf full of cross stitch magazines which I will be going through before Easter. I figure a week or so for each shelf. I am determined to do it and will them organize the magazines that survive into binders. Last time I did this about 3 years ago, I sent bags away to woments shelters along with some excess supplies for kits.

"Would you please share the list of topics you used, and how you divided them? a picture of the shelves? I wanted to label the sections but I cannot label the shelves themselves, looking for a method."

I dont know how to put up a picture.

It would kind of depend. If I had over 4+ books in a category or author I really liked, I would put them together. I used foam core from Hobby Lobby cut into rectangles long enough to extend a little more than the books and marked the topic with black marker so I could see it. Topics are mostly
Foundation piecing, Country Threads, Applique, Redwork, Sunbonnet Sue, Baltimore, Tools, Settings and Borders, Judy Martin, Country, Amish, History, Marston, Whimsicials, Possiblities, Piece o Cake, Thimbleberries, Burns, Bonnie Hunter, Scrap Quilts, Red Wagon, Quilting Itself, Quiltmania, Art to Heart, Kindred, Need'l Love, etc.

The categories will really depend on what you enjoy and have. A big category is still Miscellaneous.

The books take up about 7 shelves on a set of bookshelves and the magazines are stacked on the bottom three shelves. I clipped all my Quilters Newsletters and Australian magazines but still cannot cut up the others.

Ana

Wow! That's a lot. I have a lot too, but not that many. Probably only a couple hundred (although my husband would say more like a thousand).

Don't you just love to sit and look through those books over and over again? I get so many ideas for quilts I want to make that way.

Wow! What a collection. I actually put all my fabric in Excel by color, projects, name of collection, how much and other categories. I too was finding that I was "losing" fabric because I had no practical method of tracking it. When I pull it for a project, I highlight it in yellow-then once the project is complete and if there is not at least 1/2 yd left, I delete it from the spreadsheet. Works for me! I am glad you have found a way that works for you. Thanks for sharing.

I think I only have about 70. I ask myself why?? when so many great patterns are free on the net. I just love looking at the pictures, reading about the quilters & techniques that I will never be smart enough to accomplish. Enjoy your library - & so organized too! I hadn't thought of the Excel spreadsheet but will have to give it a try.

Thought I would share my categories also: Redwork/Embroidery; Patchwork Quilts; History; Specialty Books; Borders, Tips, & Techniques; Hawaiian; Miniature; Paper Piecing; Sampler Quilts; Crazy Quilts; Quilting and Designs; Needlepoint; Beading; Knitting; Crochet.

I made dividers from old manilla folders and keep the books in horizontal file drawers. This is what works for me.

Royllsister, Drove through Texas once or twice, but never lived there. I'm a Calif. native and just "wing-it" too.

I have lots of quilt books also, and magazines. I sorted through them a year ago, and sold the ones I did'nt want at a yard sale. Except my Quilters Newsletter Magazines. I have the first one I ever bought back in 1975 or 76 and I subscribed to them for years. In the early years they also contained a catalog where you could order quilty stuff. That was back when you could'nt find quilting stuff like you can now. Quilting really made a come back in 1976.

Thanks for your post, the other day I realized i had 2 of the same and felt very bad! No more! It is a quilter thing!

Wow! Your own personal library of quilt books!

I don't feel bad about have too many books, I have 260. I had to keep a list on me when I was really into buying books years back, and yes I had accidently ordered duplicate through a book company, which I was able to send back. Now that I look through some, some patterns are in more than 2 books and I will probably start selling some when I retire. But I love looking through them from time to time.

Did you do a tute' on How do do the spread sheet! I know I have near that many or more! years and more than 7 different magazines Dozens of series and decades of books!! Moved to basement and now all in boxes waiting...and waiting .. for' HOW to' put on shelf's Bought Office Home and Student 2010 with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OnePoint but still don't know how to start!! Please help

I don't have a huge collection of books, but I am a person who learns easily by reading and I cherish all of my books and relook at them many times! I love to find them at garage sales and library sales. I am selective, though, as I don't like older books that don't use the more modern types of tools, ect. Enjoy it all!!!!

wow. My library of just reading books tops that, but Quilting books... I get a lot of stuff online and ideas from others and just stuff i see around me. I think I have 7 or 8 quilting books. Although i just subscribed to a Quilter magazine... 841.... wow.. do you keep them in your quilting space?

Sounds like DH and myself until we moved back to the States from Vanuatu. Over the 20 years we lived there, we loaded up every trip back to the states, and finally had to build a wall-to-wall bookcase to hold them. When we packed to come back, I had to make the decision-only keep a couple of boxes of our favorites-and I donated all the rest to our Animal charity there-I build a bookcase in my Cafe there and use it as a book exchange/sale and all the proceeds go to our charity. There is really no place there to get books, so it is well-patronized! We continually get donated books from visiting yachts, tourists, and others now, and using it as an exchange (we charge about $2.00) we keep many in circulation, earning everytime one gets swapped. We get an average of about $400.00 monthly!! We use that money to help educate the locals on animal welfare and do free spay and neutering for the local's dogs and cats. Anyway, I felt better after making that decision to get rid of them. Since we've been back, we are slowly building up again. DH devours books!

Wow, that is a lot of books. And I thought my new public library in the heart of quilt country had a lot of books. I'm sure it's fun going through them.

Wow sweetana3-just re-read your post-didn't realize those were all quilting books!! I think I will go and count mine, though I only have about 30 books, the rest are magazines. I might be shocked! LOL

That is certainly a lot of quilting books !! I'm glad I don't have that many. A few days ago my shelving unit (the kind with the metal brackets and the supports that snap into them) ripped off the wall in my sewing room. Most of my quilting books and magazines were on the 3rd shelf, then I had all sorts of sewing stuff in little 4 drawer storage containers, hundreds of buttons in one drawer, stuff in plastic shoe boxes, patterns, etc. It all toppled off as the shelves came down, knocked my iron off the board, some stuff landed on "Maggie May" (my FW). I just wanted to cry. Took me all day to pick up everything and put it in the correct container. I've been wanting to make or get a tall book shelf, I knew I should have done so sooner. Well, now it's getting done. Just had to vent...So be careful with heavy stuff on shelves.

I have 900 cook books. about 50 quilting books.

I'm with you on that one. I've made over 40 quilts, and not a one is a direct copy of a pattern i found. Only three of them even used a book! But i still have too many books and magazines to mention. LOL

Sounds like a great library.